John 1:1-18. Wow. This is one of the most profound passages ever written. The Apostle John wrote the book 30-40 years after the events it describes. He spent 3 years of his life in close relationship with Jesus, and was a participant in the birth and dramatic expansion of the church. He had seen the world completely changed in his lifetime, had time to reflect on everything that had taken place, and had gained a deeper understanding of what it all meant. By the writing of his gospel, he is utterly convinced of the identity of Jesus. So he begins his book not with the birth of Jesus as a human, but his eternal existence as God: "In the beginning was the Word...." Jesus was the Word, the "logos" in Greek, the power that God used to speak the universe into existence in Genesis 1. God communicated the world into being, and was now re-creating the world in the person of Jesus. Just as God spoke the light into darkness and chaos of pre-existence in Genesis 1:3, Jesus was the light spoken into the darkness of human chaos. Just as God breathed life into living beings, Jesus was life for all men.
John is not just writing theology, he is writing his own experience. Jesus had been the Word to him: God's direct communication, God's creative power, God's life and light. John had come face to face with God in human form: "No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in close relationship with the Father, has made him known." (v. 18) John wrote his book realizing that he had been blessed with a front-row seat as God was revealing himself to humanity. His book was his effort to share that experience with the rest of us. John is not a journalist. He is a witness. He is a character in his own story, hoping that through his eyes we'll catch a glimpse of the same Jesus who brought light and life into his world.
Jesus is still the Word today. Are you, like John--and like me--an eye-witness? Leave a comment and tell us about your experience as the Light broke through in your life.
Here is the part of today's reading that stood out to me, personally, in light of where we are as a family and as a church...
ReplyDeleteJohn 1.14 (MESSAGE)
The Word became flesh and blood,
and moved into the neighborhood.
We saw the glory with our own eyes,
the one-of-a-kind glory,
like Father, like Son,
Generous inside and out,
true from start to finish.
As part of The Springs, we want to see the presence of Christ active and living in every neighborhood. When that happens our neighbors will see the "one-of-a-kind glory" and true generosity. We are that incarnation today...we are the presence of Christ in our neighborhoods, but is this what people see? Too often, my neighbors probably don't see this resonating from my front door, but I want them to.
I got stuck on the following verses: (40-42)"Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him,
ReplyDelete"We have found the Messiah" (that is the Christ). And he brought him to Jesus."
Andrew immediately thinks of someone else once he starts following Jesus. What an example for us as Christians today. We are to go tell those around us, not keep Him to ourselves. Too often I know I miss those around me that need Him most because I have lost the enthusiasm of Andrew in sharing Jesus.